3 VERY popular pronunciation mistakes

Making mistakes is a necessary stage in the process of acquiring a new language, but some mistakes are simply a matter of pronunciation. They can be derived from a lack of knowledge of certain words or due to strong influences by another language. One way or another these kind of mistakes are very easy to correct since they are simply a matter of fine tuning.
I hereby present the 3 most common pronunciation mistakes I hear all the time from my students:

1. “Kol BeSeDer”

Meaning: “Everything is Ok”, A very popular catchphrase in contemporary Hebrew and the perfect answer for “Ma NishMa? (what׳s up?). The mistake is in the first word – “Everything”. This time I blame the poor Israeli street pronunciation (as demonstrated on 1:14 in this song) – Israelis often tend to “swallow” syllables when they speak. The first syllable of the word – HA – drops  – so people are saying “Kol” instead of “HaKol”.
Therefore the correct pronunciation is: HaKol BeSeDer
If you click here you’ll be able to hear it very clearly in the first words she sings.
The Emphasis btw, should be: HaKol BeSeDer.
HaKol BeSeDer? Tov. let’s go on.

2. “MaZel Tov”

Meaning: “Congratulations”. It seems like there isn’t one person who isn’t familiar with this Hebrew blessing and people all over the world use it when they want to show their Hebrew skills (along with Shalom and LeChaYim) – But the common pronunciation is one that was influenced by the Yiddish language. The first word “MaZel” means Luck and should be pronounced as MaZal.”Tov” means good.
The Emphasis – MaZal Tov.
MaZal Tov, You now know how to pronounce “congratulations” in Hebrew perfectly.

3. “ShaLom MoRah“

Meaning: “Hello Teacher!”. So sweet but this is an English “thinking pattern”. If you really want to welcome your teacher in Hebrew you should use the Hebrew thinking pattern:
Shalom THE Teacher – ShaLom HaMorah.
The Emphasis – ShaLom HaMoRah.

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